Today’s ‘Made By Google’ event is underway with the company finally revealing its virtual reality (VR) plans in more detail. The Daydream head-mounted display (HMD) has been the big new expected, ever since the company first teased details back in May at Google I/O. At that point in time only a drawing of the supposed design was revealed, but today the hardware has finally been revealed. Alongside the unveiling of the hardware Google has announced what Daydream will cost was well as the launch date.
The Daydream HMD will be made available in November 2016, just in time for the festive season. It’ll be priced at $79 USD, for the headset, excluding the smartphone needed to use the device. Making the announcement was Clay Bavor, who showcased what the HMD would finally look like. That price is the one VRFocus reported on earlier today but the November release doesn’t nail down an actual date. It’s the same month that NetEase accidentally revealed back in May when the developer confirmed support of Daydream.
Further details are also incoming regarding Daydream’s software support. The Google I/O conference unveiled several studios work on compatible experiences including CCP Games with Gunjack NEXT and Resolutions Games with Wonderglade.
Google has announced Pixel and its long been known that ZTE’s Axon 7 and Zenfone 3 Deluxe have been officially certified with HTC, Samsung, LG, Huawei and Alcatel all previously confirming support.
The next few weeks are setting 2016 up to close with a bang for the VR industry. Along with the Daydream announcement today, later this week is Oculus Connect 3 which will feature Oculus Touch. The long awaited motion controllers should be getting an official price and release date which Oculus has always said would be Fall 2016. Then there’s the little matter of Sony Interactive Entertainment’s (SIE) PlayStation VR which arrives next week on 13th October. Pre-orders for the headset sold out fast even with several phases of stock allocations for retailers.
As ever, keep reading VRFocus for all the latest VR news from around the world.